Improvement in car-couplings



UNITED STATES Parana Carien.

JOHN MOULTON, OF MOULTONYILLE, NEW HAMPSHIRE, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND WILLIAM P. Br BROOKS, OF CHELSEA, MASS.

IMPROVEMENT IN CAR-COUPLING'S.v

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 136,610, dated March l1, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN MoULToN, of Moultonville, of the county of Carroll and State of New Hampshire, have invented a new and useful improvement or invention having reference to Railway-Car Couplings; and do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following specification and represented in the accompanying drawing, of which- Figure 1 is a top view, and Fig. 2 a side elevation, of the improved coupling in a closed state. Fig. 3 is an end view, and Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section, of it as open to discharge the double-headed connector.

In such drawing, A denotes a draw-bar, formed in two parts, a b, the upper of them being hinged to the lower at c, and both being formed as shown. Within the two parts a b is a chamber, d, one-halfof the chamber being in one of the said parts, and the other half being in the other of them. From this chamber a aring or conical mouth, e, extends, as shown. A powerfulspring, f, fastened to the larger of the parts a b, is extended over and upon the other, in manner as represented, and serves to close the part b upon the part a, and the doubleheaded connector B formed as shown. Y Each head, g, of

the connector is concave at its heel or inner end, the front end of the chamber d being correspondingly convex. Two levers, D D, arranged as shown, and pivoted to standards hh projecting upward, as represented, from the lower part a of the draw-ba-r, extend into the upper part b, and are to enable a person to raise the upper part b, as occasion may require, to uncouple the connector from the draw-bar so as to admit of the connector being drawn out of such bar. Spring-catches E E, applied to the drawbar, and formed and arranged with the two levers, enable the latter to be estopped so as to hold the part b in its elevated position.

The object of these levers, arranged as shown, is to enable a party to uncouple the connector or cars without danger of being crushed or injured in so doing.

To raise the head of the connector out of the lower half of the chamber d while the part `b is being elevated, there is extended from the part b, in manner as shown, a yoke, l. Furthermore, in order Vto hold the connector horizontal, in order that it may properly enter another draw-bar, there s a series, o, of

springs, m, arranged in the upper half of the chamber d, as shown.

When the jaws or parts a b of the draw-bar are closed, and one conoidal head of the con nector is in the act of being forced into and through the mouth of the chamber d, the upper b will be pressed upward until the head may have passed into the chamber, which taking place, the upper part b will be forced downward upon the pa-rt a, and the connector will be coupled to the draw-bar.

In order to enable the draw-bar to be used with the ordinary link and pin, there is a hole or pin-passage, m', made down through both the parts a b, it leading through the mouth ov of the chamber d of such parts.

I make no claim to either of the couplings shown and described in the United States patents No. 79,481, 111,123, 119,475. In neither of such couplers is there found two levers arranged on o-pposite sides of the draw-bar, and extended bteween the jaws, and provided with latches, as in my coupling.v When two levers are so used a party need not go between the cars to uncouple them, but may accomplish this from either side of the drawbar. Furthermore, in neither of the patented couplers do we find the yoke and springs fixed to the upper jaw so as to be movable therewith, and by it alone. Nor do we find a link-pin hole in the jaws to enable the coupling to be used with a common open link as well as with the double-headed connector. Therefore,

What I claim as my invention in the abovedescribed coupling is as follows, viz:

1. The combination and arrangement of the two levers D D with the chambered parts a b, hinged together, and provided with a closingspring, as set forth.

2. The combination and arrangement of the two catches E E with the levers D D andthe chambered parts ab, hinged together, and provided with a closing-spring, as explained.

3. The combination and arrangement of the series o of springs with the parts a b, chambered, hinged together, and provided with the closing-spring, substantially as explained.

4. The draw-bar as constructed of the two parts a b, hinged and provided with the clos'- in g-sprin g, and chambered, and furnished with a conical mouth to such chamber and with the set of levers D D, and as having the link-pin hole m arranged in such parts a b and with respect to the mouth e of the chamber, all substantially as shown and described.

JOHN MOULTON.

Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, S. N. PIPER. 

